SYRACUSE — A seven-run inning and some strong defensive plays helped the Warsaw softball team win 8-2 at Wawasee Wednesday. The Northern Lakes Conference victory over the Lady Warriors (7-7, 2-4 NLC) comes a day after the Lady Tigers (10-5, 5-3 NLC) were hammered 12-1 by Northridge. “We took a thumping last night from Northridge, so to put seven on the board and get off to a good start was good for us tonight,” Warsaw coach Jim Speicher said. Warsaw got off to a 2-0 second-inning lead after freshman Ashley Ousley and senior Paige Wood each hit RBI singles. With two outs and Wood at first, a grounder to third base was then mishandled, allowing junior Carly Foreman to reach base and opened the door for a big inning. With two runners on, sophomore Alex Sanchez hit an RBI single, followed by a two-run double by junior Kendra Marshall, increasing the lead to 4-0. Junior Kelsey Dotson then came to the plate, with pinch runner Natalie Ousley at third and Marshall at second, and proceeded to blast the ball well over the center-field fence, building a 7-0 lead. “We went outside on Dotson and she was able to get her bat out there through the zone,” Wawasee Cory Schutz said. The home run was Dotson’s fourth of the week, having two against Elkhart Memorial Tuesday and one against Northridge. “She’s kind of heating up,” Speicher said of Dotson, who went 3 for 4 in the game. “She’s kind of locked in and doing a good job. She’s kind of relaxed. She had a huge year last year, putting up great numbers, so I think she came in pressing a little bit as a junior, wanting to duplicate that. She’s hitting her stride at the right time.” The huge inning could have spelled the beginning of a shortened game with the 10-run rule, but Wawasee junior pitcher Gabi Routson allowed just four hits over the next five innings, giving her team a chance, but the Wawasee offense squandered its opportunities. Leaving 12 runners on base, with eight being stranded in scoring position, Schutz watched as potential runners were left stranded, including a bases-loaded situation in the third. “We need to be more effective,” Schutz said. “We talked about that Monday — getting the big hit when runners are on base.” The Warsaw defense also helped to keep those runners from crossing home plate. With one out in the bottom of the sixth, and Warsaw in front 8-2, Wawasee had runners at second and third when senior Mattia Rostochak hit a fly ball to right field. Wawasee sophomore Kylie Norris then tried to score from third, but Warsaw freshman right fielder gunned her down at the plate, ending the threat. “It was a huge momentum killer for them,” Speicher said about the play. Again, in the bottom of the seventh, Wawasee cut the Warsaw lead to 8-3 following an RBI-single by senior Samantha Johnson and had runners at first and third with only one out. However, the game was ended when freshman Stacie Carr lined out to second base, leading to an easy double play at first. “Overall, I’ve been pretty happy with our defense,” Speicher said. “We’re 10-5 and the defense hasn’t really cost us any games. There’s times when we haven’t hit enough to score runs or there’s other times when our pitchers haven’t held them enough, but defense has been solid.” Sanchez was the winning pitcher, but the win didn’t come too easy, giving up nine hits and walking five. “I was impressed with the way she bounced back from a difficult loss (Tuesday),” Speicher said. “She didn’t have her best stuff, but she battled. She’s a tough competitor and kept us in the ball game.” Marshall and freshman Kaleigh Speicher each went 2 for 3 in the win, with a double being one of Marshall’s hits. For Wawasee, Norris, Routson, junior Courtney McClure and Johnson all had two hits, with Routson hitting a double in the process. Both teams are back in NLC action Friday, as Wawasee hosts Elkhart Memorial and Warsaw welcomes Goshen and their hard-throwing pitcher Natalie Newell. “She struck out eight of the first nine batters, but then we only had four strikeouts over the last four innings,” Speicher said. “We made progress, so I’m anxious to see how we battle her Friday.” Goshen enters the game with a conference-best 7-1 mark, while Warsaw sits in second at 5-3.
